DUSHANBE, March 29, 2010, Asia-Plus – The flight delay problem between Tajikistan and Russia has been successfully solved, Tajik Minister of Transport and Communications Olimjon Boboyev told Asia-Plus today.
According to him, he had a telephone conversation with the Russian minister of transport today morning. “All documents necessary to resume flights between the two countries will be signed today and the disputable aspects will be discussed later,” Boboyev said, noting that the first planes from Moscow to Dushanbe are expected to arrive today night.
Asked about compensation for passengers, the minister said the air companies would decide themselves in what form they would compensate passengers for canceling the flights.
We will recall that passengers flying from Moscow to Dushanbe, Khujand and Kulob by planes of Tajik airlines Tajik Air and Somon Air have stuck at Moscow’s Domodedovo Airport for already four days. Several hundreds of passengers have reportedly been stranded at the Domodedovo airport since March 26.
According to Deputy Tajik Minister of Transport and Communications in charge of the civil aviation, Farrukh Hamroyev, the flight delays have been caused by Russia’s shift to the summer time and lack of a new agreement between the two countries on the flight schedule. “The last document on this subject will be signed today and the air communication will resume,” said Hamroyev, “In order to protect interests of Tajik air carriers we have prohibited planes of Russian companies to operate flights to Tajikistan until the new flight schedule document is signed.”
In the meantime, Somon Air says that it was the Russian side (Russia’s federal air transport agency, Rosaviatsia) that has suspended flights of both Tajik and Russian air companies to Tajikistan.
